


When the Magic Ends (or Samderella)

by cutelittlekitty



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Background Destiel, Guardian Angel!Balthazar, Guardian Angel!Castiel, M/M, Sabriel - Freeform, Sam lost his shoe, Supernatural AU-Modern fairy tale, Supernatural Cinderella, guardian angel!gabriel, nursing home
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-22
Updated: 2019-02-22
Packaged: 2019-11-03 15:45:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17880605
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cutelittlekitty/pseuds/cutelittlekitty
Summary: Sam works morning ‘til night at the nursing home his step-mom, Kate, owns.  And then some, since he shares the night shift with his brother, Dean.  Their younger half-brother, Adam, only has to entertain, but never shows anyway, leaving Sam to take on even more work.  Still, he keeps his chin up and soldiers on, but when his step-mother excludes him from the family invitation to the Moore’s masquerade, saying someone has to mind the shop, it’s just one straw too many.  There’s gotta be a better life for him, somewhere, somehow.  All he can do is pray that he finds it.  --It’s Cinderella like you’ve never seen, with more twists than a Chubby Checker Concert!--





	When the Magic Ends (or Samderella)

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Gabriel Monthly Challenge prompt: Statement/Ambiance: His heart skipped a beat, then swelled with warmth and devotion at such a rapid pace that tears stung at his eyes with the intensity of it.
> 
> Thanks to [CR Noble](https://archiveofourown.org/users/erudite12) for checking it over for me :D

“Tell me you’re not watching him again, brother,” Castiel frowned, alighting on the cumulonimbus where an archangel lay on his stomach, chin resting on his crossed arms as he looked down upon the earth.

“Sure thing, Cassie. If you want me to lie,” Gabriel smirked, gaze never leaving his human charge below. 

Castiel folded his large black wings in and sat beside his older brother. “Why are you always doing that? What’s so fascinating about one human?” he asked.

“You’d know if you tried it,” Gabe shrugged, smiling fondly down at the overlarge young man as he made his rounds, checking on each elderly ‘guest’ in turn. Whether it was helping Mildred find her reading glasses, holding yarn for Celeste while she knits, or listening to Fred Jones tell the same war stories over and over, Sam made time in his busy day to help everyone. That was in addition to all his actual duties, which included administration, admissions, bookkeeping, and, with help from Dean, personal care and hygiene for male residents. Entertainment was supposed to be handled by Adam, Sam’s younger half-brother, but he was thirteen and needed time to study. At least, that was the excuse Sam provided for him never being around after school to keep the guests company. 

Dean had been known to chat here and there, but he was in charge of maintenance and it was surprising how many things broke in nursing homes. Or maybe it was just their nursing home. Kate, Sam and Dean’s step-mother, was a registered nurse, so she handled meds and other medical care for the residents. Some old family friends, Ellen and her daughter Jo, handled the cooking and personal care for female residents. Garth, a friend of their dad’s friend Bobby, handled cleaning and laundry with help from Dean when he had time. 

Everyone was busy, but no one as busy as Sam, though Dean was a close second. Both young men were old enough to be off doing their own things, but they’d been raised to believe that family was everything and that meant sticking with the family business. Even when Kate sold off the auto repair shop to Bobby after John’s death and bought this place instead. Sure, Sam, and especially Dean, would’ve preferred the auto shop, but everything went to Kate, and she wanted a nursing home. So, like the good sons they were, Sam and Dean went along with it. And continued with it, though they didn’t have to.

“Even for a guardian angel, that’s a lot to know about them,” Castiel commented.

“Oops, did I say all that out loud? Didn’t mean to. Anyway, like I said, Sam’s pretty amazing,” Gabriel shrugged. “It’s better than daytime TV.”

“I don’t know what that is, but if you ask me, the older brother sounds more interesting. You said he spends most of his time fixing things, but still tries to make time to help everyone else with their work? I bet his guardian angel is pretty busy.”

Gabriel huffed a laugh. “Yeah, Balthazar’s busy alright. Busy following Jo around like a lovesick puppy. But Dean-o’s a tough cookie. He can take care of himself.”

“That’s not right,” Castiel frowned, drawing deep vertical creases in his forehead. “His guardian is supposed to be looking out for him.”

“Why don’t you do it?” Gabriel suggested.

“It’s not my job.”

“Yeah, but it could be. We haven’t needed heavenly warriors in ages. Baz transferred over from your unit, no reason you can’t transfer too. We can make it temporary if ya want.”

“And you’d assign me to look after the older brother?”

“Yeah, Dean. Be nice having you around more,” Gabriel replied, taking his eyes off Sam just long enough to flash a grin at the Seraph.

“What about Balthazar?”

“No worries. I’ll switch him over to Jo and put Samandriel on a newborn. Think there’s one due to be born tonight, Alfie. Well, Alfonze, but his parents won’t ever call him anything but Alfie.”

“Are you sure it’s wise, assigning Balthazar to look after a human he’s attracted to?” Castiel asked.

Gabriel shrugged. “It’s in his best interest to keep her safe, right? If she dies, he’ll get reassigned and never see her again.”

“I’m not sure Balthazar is capable of thinking that far ahead.”

“You could be right about that, but either way, Baz isn’t letting her out of his sight, so I’m sure they’ll be fine. Whaddya say, wanna be a guardian angel for a bit?”

“Well, things have been rather dull around the garrison. And it might be interesting to find out what’s so fascinating about these humans, Castiel agreed.

“Great!” Gabriel replied, snapping his fingers. “Paperwork’s all handled. You’re now Dean’s official guardian angel. C’mon, let’s head down and let Baz and Samandriel know about their reassignments.

 

*****

 

“Does your mom know about-” Sam sighed into the phone, trying not to let his exasperation reach his voice as he listened to the caller who’d cut him off mid-sentence. “Adam, leaving a note isn’t the same as asking permission,” Sam chided. “You can’t ask me, I’m not Dad and I’m not your mom,” Sam insisted, listening to more rambling. “Look, yes, I love you, and yes, I look after you, but no, I can’t give you the go-ahead to go to an all-night party. You have to ask your mom,” Sam frowned. “Adam, wait! You can’t-” Sam sighed as the phone disconnected, slamming it toward the counter but stopping at the last second. There was no way he could afford to buy a new one.

“What’d Adam do this time?” Dean asked, setting an armload of boxes on the counter to give himself a break while he talked.

“He’s going to an all-night party.”

“Dude, Kate’s gonna blow a gasket,” Dean grumbled, shaking his head.

“Yeah, but not on him. He’s going to tell her I said it was okay, even though I insisted he had to get permission from his mom.”

“Perks of being both her only child and the youngest of three. The little shit gets away with murder and we get all the blame.”

“He’s a teenager. That’s what they’re like. I’m sure you and I were just as bad at his age,” Sam defended, though he wanted to agree with Dean.

“He’s a spoiled frickin’ brat is what he is. Kid’s gonna spend his life leeching off his mom’s money and our hard work. It ain’t right,” Dean complained. “And you may not be able to remember seven years ago but I do. When you were his age, you assigned yourself reading lists and wouldn’t have known a good time if it’d bit you in the ass. Probably still wouldn’t, come to think of it.”

“You would’ve partied every night if you could have, though,” Sam pointed out.

“Yeah, but I didn’t. I was home after school every day, taking care of you,” Dean countered. “Being a teenager is no excuse to blow off things you have to do. It’s when you’re supposed to be learning how to handle responsibilities. And Adam’s never gonna learn shit if you keep letting him slide and making excuses for him.”

“I’m not making excuses for him. I _told_ him to get permission from his mom.”

“You make excuses for him not doing his job. And then go and do his work on top of your own. And it’s not like his job’s even hard. All he has to do is hang out with the old people, maybe play a few games or put together a puzzle. Hell, he could bring his homework and have them help. Good way to keep their minds sharp and keep on top of his school stuff. But he doesn’t. When’s the last time he even showed his face around here? Mildred’s been here for months and has no idea who he is.”

“It’s not like I can drag him here. If he doesn’t wanna come, he doesn’t wanna come. What am I supposed to do about it?”

“Talk to Kate. She’s his mom, she should be showing more of an interest in what he gets up to.”

“Already did that. She said he’s been studying for mid-terms and working on a couple research projects.”

“Bullshit. If that kid’s done any work outside of school I’ll wear that sweater Celeste knitted me,” Dean spat.

“The pink one with the green puff balls on it?” Sam asked.

“Yeah.”

“I’d say I’ll hold you to that, but I already know you’re right. He spends his time hanging out with friends and partying. You should wear the sweater anyway; Celeste worked hard on that. How did she put it? ‘Pink to match those rosy cheeks and green to bring out your eyes’?”

“Something like that. And it’s not like I don’t appreciate the sweater, I just … prefer flannels,” Dean replied diplomatically.

“At least she’s not buying you flowers like Mildred,” Sam chuckled.

“Hey, that was just ‘cause it was my birthday,” Dean protested.

“Maybe, but I bet she doesn’t buy flowers for anyone else on their birthday.”

“I gotta get back to work,” Dean evaded, grabbing his stack of boxes and rushing off.

Sighing, Sam went behind the counter and sat down, moving the mouse to wake the screen up so he could go back to working on the bookkeeping. That work wasn’t so bad, it was just all the other things he had to get to that made it frustrating. This needed to be done quickly, but if he rushed through it and made a mistake, that could be disastrous. So he took his time, double checking each entry and then rechecking everything once he was done, making sure the totals added up correctly both on paper and on the screen, then subtracting the amounts entered from the new total to make sure he got the old total. He did. No mistakes. 

Stretching, his back gave several small pops, though his nineteen-year-old body had no business making those kinds of noises yet. Apparently his body disagreed, knees cracking as he stood and headed to the kitchen to drop off the invoice for tomorrow’s delivery. Then it was shower night for Mr. Jones and a bath and hair trim for Elvis. But before that, he checked on all the residents, making sure they were enjoying themselves. It’d probably be after eleven by the time he got everyone taken care of and in bed. Enough time for a quick shower and a few hours sleep before he had to be up to take over the night duty from Dean. Wash, rinse, repeat. Too bad labor laws didn’t apply when you worked for family. He and Dean could both use a break. Like, seriously, because one or both of them would break if they had to keep up this pace much longer.

 

*****

 

“I can’t believe you gave him permission to go. I’m disappointed in you, Samuel. I thought you had more sense than that, but clearly you don’t,” Kate ranted, arms flying through the air to emphasize her agitation.

“I keep trying to tell you, I didn’t-”

“Don’t give me that, he showed me the call in his phone log.”

“Yes, we talked, but I told him-” Sam tried again.

“Told him to go and have fun, that you’d cover with me. Don’t try to worm your way out of the can of trouble you bought yourself. Adam already told me everything,” Kate interrupted, not giving him a chance to get a word in edgewise.

“That’s not-”

“As punishment, you will take over Adam’s duties in addition to your own for the next two weeks so that he has time to study. Hopefully, that will teach you some responsibility.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Sam mumbled, knowing that arguing would just make her angrier and earn him a longer ‘punishment’. Since it was something he’d already been doing for months anyway, it didn’t really count but that didn’t need to be pointed out either.

“Good. Now, I’m going to do my rounds, distribute meds, then head out,” Kate nodded before hurrying off. Sam would bet money she had a date again, and he had little enough that he didn’t bet lightly.

“I’ll take that bet,” an unfamiliar voice declared.

Whipping around, Sam found himself face to… well, not face to face. More like towering over a shorter man with honey-blonde hair and caramel eyes, dominated by a grin like sunshine. “Oops, sorry. Didn’t mean to say that out loud,” Sam mumbled.

“I’ll still take the bet,” the guy grinned, eyes crinkling.

“And you’d lose,” Sam chuckled.

“If it’s to you, I wouldn’t mind losing,” the man teased, causing Sam to wonder who the guy was and why he was there. Even though it almost seemed like he was flirting, that couldn’t possibly be what was happening.

“Are you a friend of Kate’s?” Sam asked, confused. “Oh, are you her date?” Why did that question make him feel a bit sad?

“What? Me and her? Not a chance, Samshine. Actually, I’m here for you. Heard you needed an entertainer, and I just so happen to need a captive audience for my act. Figured maybe we could help each other out,” The guy said, putting Sam at ease for a moment until one of his words snagged on a loose thread in his brain.

“Samshine?” he asked.

“Your name’s Sam, right?”

“How did you know?”

The man pointed to the name embroidered on Sam’s shirt. Right, nametag, so the residents don’t have to stress over remembering. “I’m Gabe, by the way. Gabe Engel.”

“Oh, yeah. Nice to meet you, Gabe,” Sam replied on automatic, shaking hands with the shorter man. “And thanks for the offer, but we really can’t afford-”

“Nope, no money, I insist. Like I said, I need practice with an audience. Besides, old people are pretty fascinating. Always have all kinds of interesting stories, right?” Gabe grinned, looking like he’d love nothing more than to spend his afternoons and evenings hanging out in a retirement home.

“I’m not sure if that’s allowed,” Sam frowned. “Legally speaking.”

“Should be fine with a background check, right?” Dean asked, interrupting the conversation as he set his toolbox on the counter.

“That’s right!” Gabe exclaimed, snapping his fingers. “A quick background check should put your mind at ease. You can look up my brothers if you want, too; Cas and Baz Engel. They sometimes help out with my act.”

“So what, now you want me to let three strangers into the facility instead of one?” Sam asked skeptically.

“Not strangers; volunteers. I promise, we’ll keep your residents entertained and happy. Then you won’t have to take on the extra work,” Gabriel explained.

“It’s not really extra; I’ve already been handling it for the past few months. And how much of that did you hear? Where did you come from?” Sam frowned, realizing he hadn’t heard the bell from the door opening. It was a loud bell, too, because they had to be able to hear if there was any chance a resident had slipped out without notice.

“Dude, ever hear the phrase ‘don’t look a gift horse in the mouth’? Means something like ‘free is free, so take what you get an’ shut your pie-hole about it’,” Dean interjected with a roll of his eyes. “C’mon, Sammy, you’ve been runnin’ yourself into the ground and you know it.”

“No Winchester has ever been afraid of a little hard work. I’m not about to be the first. If Kate thinks I can handle it, then I’ll handle it.”

“Delegating is also a way of handling it, and since it doesn’t cost Milligan Manors a cent, why not?” Gabe pointed out.

Frowning, Sam went around the counter to do a google search on Gabe, Cas, and Baz Engel. Their online presences seemed to check out. Going to the state’s official website, he looked up laws relating to nursing home volunteers. There was a form he needed on file for each volunteer and a mandatory background check, the fee of which was waived for medical facilities, including nursing homes that distributed medications. Printing out three copies of the form needed, he handed them to Gabe. “You and your brothers have to fill these out. Once that’s done, I’m required by state law to do a thorough background check. As long as that comes back clean you’re welcome to volunteer.”

“Yes!” Gabe grinned, fist raised in triumph as he accepted the forms.

“That eager for an audience?” Sam asked, eyebrows raised.

“Absolutely,” Gabe confirmed, barely stumbling over the reply. He hadn’t meant to be so enthusiastic.

“Ooookay then. So, bring those back any time during business hours and we’ll go from there.

“You got it, Samtastic!” Gabe said, turning and rushing out the door so Sam didn’t see him facepalm over getting too excited again mere seconds after the first time.

 

*****

 

“Gabriel, isn’t this overstepping your duties?” Castiel asked as the archangel appeared beside him, back in non-corporeal form. Angels couldn’t be seen or heard by humans in their natural state so they were free to talk. Having been keeping a careful watch on Dean, Cas was in the room Gabe had just left, where the brothers were discussing the weird volunteer and wondering if his brothers would be odd too.

“It’s fine. Sam’s working himself into an early grave; what kind of guardian would I be if I let that continue? This definitely counts as protecting him,” Gabriel insisted.

“Sure it does. If you don’t mind bending the rules. Into knots,” Castiel deadpanned.

“Hey, if you think I’m outta line, feel free to report me,” Gabe smirked.

“Somehow, I have a feeling the director of the guardian angel division would let you slide,” Cas replied, rolling his eyes.

“Somehow, I have a feeling you’re right,” Gabriel laughed. Of course he wasn’t going to punish himself; that was one of the perks of taking on the pain-in-the-ass job of being in charge.

“But, if you could be serious for a minut-”

“Never!” Gabriel interjected, eyes twinkling with mischief.

“Are you done?” Cas asked.

“Not even close,” Gabe laughed again.

Cas sighed. “Would you please explain why you thought it wise to drag me and Balthazar into this?”

“We’re all here, they need entertainers, we’re entertaining. What’s the problem?”

“I may be new to this, but I’m fairly certain we aren’t supposed to be seen by the humans we’re looking after,” Castiel frowned.

“Nah, it’s fine, as long as they don’t find out what we are,” Gabriel shrugged.

“And when they do the background check and find we don’t have any history?”

“Ah, already taken care of. We’re all legal citizens of the U.S. with social security numbers and passports and employment histories, school records, online presence; the works.”

“Since when?” Cas queried, eyebrow quirked.

“Since a few minutes ago, when I snapped my fingers,” Gabe grinned.

“You love abusing your archangel powers, don’t you?”

“Every day,” Gabe replied, wriggling his brows. “Hey, if I don’t let it out regularly it’ll build up and I’ll explode.

“That doesn’t sound real,” Cas frowned.

“Hey, it could be. I’m not about to test it out and see,” Gabe shrugged, gaze drawn to Sam as Dean left, going back to his work. “Looks like you’ve gotta go. We’ll fill these out tonight once Sam, Dean, and Jo are asleep.” 

With one last roll of his eyes at Gabriel, Castiel flew off after Dean.

 

*****

 

“So, that’s the paperwork, all filled out. These are my brothers: Cas,” Gabe said, nodding toward the tall, dark-haired man in a suit covered by a tan trench coat, complete with a tie, the blue of which matched his eyes, “and Baz,” he finished, nodding toward the almost-as-tall man on his left with blonde hair and smaller blue eyes, wearing a rakish grin.

After looking over the new men for a few minutes, Sam glanced through the paperwork, finding everything filled in properly. “Okay, I have to run the background checks,” he sighed, rubbing at his eyes. “It’ll take a while, so if you want to come back tomorrow, you shou-”

“Actually, you really look like you could use some help today. How about we each pair up with one of your workers. We can learn the lay of the land, so to speak, help out where we can, and you can keep an eye on us,” Gabe interrupted.

“That sounds great, in theory, but legally speaking-”

“It’s fine, Sam. We can just pretend they’re visitors for today. Right? Visitors don’t require background checks. And as long as they’re not near the meds, which they won’t be ‘cause Kate handles those and keeps ‘em locked up, it should be fine,” Dean interrupted, once again arriving in the middle of a conversation. It was as if he was making a point of visiting his brother more often, worried about the bags under his eyes and paleness of his skin. “Blue-eyes here can come with me, the other new guy can help Ellen and Jo in the kitchen, and the one from yesterday, -Gabe was it?- can help you out, Sam.”

“I have a name,” the dark-haired man frowned.

“Doesn’t everyone?” Dean grinned. “Dean Winchester,” he said, holding out his hand.

Castiel frowned at the offered hand, not sure what he was supposed to do with it. He’d only been a guardian angel for two days; human customs were a mystery to him.

“Cassie here’s a bit shy,” Gabe said, shaking the extended hand in his brother’s stead.

“Ok, Cassie, follow me,” Dean said, picking his toolbox back up and heading down the hall.

Setting off at a brisk, stiff walk, Cas caught up quickly though he was very unused to doing so without his wings to aid him. “Castiel,” he said as he caught up.

“Huh?”

“My name. It’s Castiel, not Cassie. Gabriel calls me that because he thinks it bothers me.”

“Does it?”

“Yes.”

Dean laughed. “Ok, how ‘bout Cas then?”

Castiel nodded. “That would be acceptable.”

The others watched ‘til they rounded the corner at the end of the hall, then Sam turned his attention to Gabe and Baz. “I guess we should head to the kitchen then,” he shrugged, taking a moment to start the background checks before coming out from behind the counter to lead the way. As they went, Sam pointed out different parts of the facility, not knowing that the angels had been watching over him and Dean since long before Kate had bought the nursing home and therefore knew every inch of the place just as well as the Winchesters did. Upon reaching the kitchen, Baz broke into a huge grin at the sight of Jo, eliciting a frown from Sam. “She’s a bit young for you, and her mom will have your balls in a vice before you can say ‘jailbait’,” he warned.

Balthazar opened his mouth to say that might actually be fun, but curbed his tongue at a disapproving look from Gabe. “Seeing as she isn’t in school during school hours, I would estimate her over eighteen. But regardless, I shall refrain from touching. Looking? Teasing? Maybe a bit. But no touching; you have my word,” he said instead, in an accent that seemed made to melt the panties off of girls. Probably guys too.

“Dude, have you ever heard the phrase ‘sexual harassment’?” Sam sighed.

“Hey, as long as he keeps his hands to himself and isn’t a creep, I don’t mind a few looks or some verbal sparring,” Jo said, having crossed the dining room while they were talking. “I’m pretty sure I can handle him, but I’m not gonna file harassment charges. If he gets to be a problem, I’ll let you know, Sam.”

“Oh, I have every confidence you can handle me,” Baz smirked.

“Sure can. Too bad you can’t handle me,” Jo retorted, sticking her tongue out.

“This is going to be so much fun.”

“You know, on second thought, maybe we should put you with Garth,” Sam suggested.

“Nah, I agree with this guy. I think we’ll have fun working together,” Jo smiled.

“I’m Balthazar, but you can call me Baz if you prefer,” the angel offered, extending a hand.

“Jo,” the blonde replied, placing her hand in his.

“Enchanté,” Baz grinned, touching his lips to the back of her hand.

“Hey, you promised no touching!” Sam grimaced.

“Who’s touching who?” Ellen called, coming out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dish towel draped over her shoulder.

“That doesn’t count as touching. It’s a proper human greeting,” Balthazar protested with a slight ‘oomph’ as Gabriel elbowed him.

Sam turned his attention to Jo’s mom. “Ellen, this is Balthazar. I was going to ask you and Jo to keep an eye on him for today, let him help you out, but-”

“A pleasure to meet you, madam,” Baz smiled, kissing the mother’s hand same as he had her daughter, his accent dripping with charm.

“Oh. Well. I think we can keep him out of trouble,” Ellen informed Sam, eyes never leaving Balthazar’s face. “But don’t you go thinkin’ you can smile your way outta anythin’. Hard work’s worth way more‘n a silver tongue is in my kitchen. An’ if you hurt my daughter in any way, so help me, once she’s done with you I will knock you into next Tuesday and then some. You hear me?” she added to Baz, the blush in her cheeks belying her stern tone.

“Yes, ma’am. I promise to be on my very best behaviour,” Baz smiled.

“Well, then, there’s that settled. Looks like they’ll get along just fine. Come on, Samshine, let’s get back to your desk,” Gabriel said, hooking an arm around Sam’s and herding him out of the dining room. Sam looked back over his shoulder as though wanting to protest, but gave up with a sigh. He was obviously too tired to argue.

“So, what work you got on your plate and how can I help?” Gabriel asked as they neared the front desk.

“Bookkeeping to start, then I need to check on the guests before the new resident arrives at four.

“I know you’re not going to let me handle the books, so how about if I handle phone calls and visitors while you work. And if you have any filing or copying or cleaning around here, I can take care of that too,” Gabriel suggested.

Sam nodded, covering a yawn before handing Gabe a stack of letters, envelopes, and a mailing list. “Could you stuff and address these? Everyone not crossed out on the mailing list should be sent one.”

“No problemo Sam-O. But, could you maybe do just the first one, so I can see it done the right way?” Gabriel replied, trying not to look like an idiot. He’d seen Sam send out the monthly newsletters before, but had been paying more attention to his face than what his hands were doing.

Sam folded a newsletter in thirds, using an envelope to measure, then addressed the envelope in clear block letters before sliding the paper in and running a damp sponge over the glue to seal it. That done, he put a dot in the May column corresponding to the name, placed a stamp squarely in the corner, and set the finished product in the ‘out’ tray.

“Seems easy enough,” Gabriel nodded, pushing his sleeves up. Pulling the chair that Dean sometimes used over, he sat as close to Sam as he could without being in range of elbows as the taller man typed. Once settled, he got to work, only to find that the folding part was harder than it looked. It had to be almost exactly in thirds and completely straight for the paper to fit in the envelope, and the first one, he inserted the paper before addressing the envelope and found that made it harder to write on. Winding up with a mistake, Gabriel had to unstuff the envelope, address a new one, and put the letter back in. Definitely wasn’t as easy as it looked, but after the first few he got the hang of it and started moving faster. 

Before long he was finished, and turned to boast his accomplishment to Sam, only to find the taller man dozing in his chair. Rather than disturb the sleep-deprived man, Gabe moved off quietly to start the checks on the patients. That was something he’d seen Sam do plenty of times, and didn’t need instruction for. 

Currently, the facility housed twelve residents, two of the fourteen rooms being unoccupied. Starting with room fifteen (there was no room thirteen, so that room was fourteen and fourteen was fifteen), Gabe visited each private room, introducing himself to the residents, helping if they needed anything, and just being generally cute and cheerful. Almost every resident asked where Sam was, and they were happy to hear he was taking a much-needed nap. Seems Gabriel and Dean weren’t the only ones concerned over how hard Sam was pushing himself. At five minutes to four, Gabriel excused himself from Mildred, with whom he was conversing in sign language (good thing guardian angels know every language ever) so she could practice. She had a deaf niece who face-timed her often, and signing was more accurate than relying on voice to text. Heading back to the front desk, he was pleased to see that Sam was still sleeping. Though reluctant to wake him, the new resident would be arriving any moment and that was something Sam would want to see to himself.

“What!” Sam exclaimed, startling awake though Gabe’s hand had been gentle on his shoulder, the lightest touch. “Crap,” he said, rubbing his hands over his face and wiping the sleep from his eyes. “I fell asleep, didn’t I? How long was I out?”

“Not long enough. But it’s four and you said a new resident-”

“Crap!” Sam said again, jumping up. “I still have to get the room ready.”

“Hey, relax. Garth was doing that when I checked on the residents,” Gabriel soothed, trying to reassure Sam.

“When you what?” Sam demanded.

“When I… oops, crap. I wasn’t supposed to go anywhere without you, right? But I finished the envelopes and you were sleeping and looked like you needed it, and the background checks are going to come back clean, so I shouldn’t really need supervision. _I_ know I’m trustworthy as an angel. I know _you_ don’t know that yet, but I swear by my father, I don’t want to do anything but help you,” Gabe rushed to assure, mentally kicking himself for mentioning having been away from the desk. He never would have lied about it, but he hadn’t planned on telling Sam unless asked.

“Help me? You said you needed to practice your-” Sam was interrupted by the loud bell on the door. “Watch the desk. Don’t move. We will talk about this later,” Sam hissed before turning to the new resident, Cuthbert Sinclair, and his family with a bright smile that didn’t quite hide his exhaustion but made a good go of it.

 

*****

 

“Ok, what did you mean about wanting to help _me_?” Sam demanded after ten pm that night. It had been a busy day, but then, that was par for the course. What wasn’t normal was that his work was finished before eleven or twelve.

“What? I meant… I mean, why wouldn’t I want to help you? You work morning ‘til night every day and never get a break. How is that even legal? If you try to keep up this pace you’re going to work yourself into an early grave,” Gabriel defended. He wished he could make some excuse but it was against his policy to tell a lie, and he hadn’t come up with an acceptable half-truth.

“How would you know? What are you, some kind of stalker?”

“No, no, I’m not. I’m just someone who’s watching over you. But not in a creeper way. It’s my… I’m not supposed to tell you that. You wouldn’t believe me anyway. Look, I just want to help out, take some of the weight off your shoulders. You’re a good guy and you deserve a break. You deserve a life, too, but I’d settle for you not working yourself to death.”

“What, so you’re some kinda secret agent but can’t tell me about it?” Sam scoffed.

“If I start answering those kinds of things you’ll just play 20 questions ‘til you get it and I’m not supposed to let that happen, so I’m not answering,” Gabriel replied with an apologetic smile.

“Do you think being all mysterious is going to win me over?” Sam huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

“Samshine, I’m not trying to win you over. You don’t have to like me, I just need you to let me help you,” Gabriel pleaded.

“Why should I-”

“Sammy, let it go. They’re here to help; let them help,” Dean stated as he and Cas arrived at the front desk. They were walking a bit closer than most people would, and Gabe made a mental note to say something to Cas about personal space.

Though he looked ready to argue, Sam sighed, collapsing into his computer chair. “Why is everyone ganging up on me?”

“Maybe because we don’t want to see you working yourself to death?” Jo said as she arrived with Balthazar. Jo was punching the taller man on the arm, apparently at something he’d said while they were walking. She was smiling, so it couldn’t have been too bad, though Baz was rubbing his bicep with an approving grin on his face.

“I suggested we could take over the night shifts and Dean said if we wanted to trade off keeping an eye on things we could share the empty room to sleep in,” Castiel commented. The angels didn’t need to sleep, of course, but being in corporeal form for extended amounts of time was taxing so they’d either have to start eating and sleeping or spend more time in their natural forms. Besides, the humans would get suspicious if they worked all night and all day too.

“You guys were just volunteering for entertainment, you can’t work all night. That’s way more than you should be doing for free. When will you have time to work on your own things?” Sam protested.

“If the three of us trade off during the night and sleep in the morning, we can do entertainment for two hours after lunch, take a break to do our own stuff, then do a couple more hours after dinner. After that, we can just relax until time for the night shift again. Well, I’m the only one who needs to do the entertainment. Cassie can continue working with Dean, and Baz with Jo and Ellen, at whatever times are necessary and appropriate,” Gabe countered. “I told you, we want to help. Now, get your tush upstairs and get a proper night’s sleep. We can handle things here. It’s just making sure the guests are in bed and helping them to the bathroom if needed, right?”

“But Kate won’t approve,” Sam frowned, still finding objections.

“Hey, she ain’t gonna be back tonight. And morning meds aren’t due ‘til 8 am so ‘s long as you’re in around seven, she’ll never even know. You checked the legal stuff, the background check was good, we should be fine, right?” Dean said.

“I guess…” Sam sighed, giving in. He couldn’t think of any more valid objections. Honestly, he couldn’t really think much of anything; he was just too tired. 

Apparently satisfied with his answer, Jo hugged both brothers, waved to Gabe and Cas, and tossed a flirty smirk toward Baz before heading back toward the kitchen. Balthazar watched her retreating form with fond appreciation that was interrupted when Dean cleared his throat.

“C’mon, Sammy. Let’s get you upstairs and into bed. Lookin’ forward to a full six hours sleep myself tonight,” Dean yawned. After all, he’d been working just as hard as Sam, maybe even harder. He was just better at hiding it. “And Cas, thanks. You’re an angel,” he added with a wink, grabbing Sam by the shoulders from behind and turning him toward the hallway that led to the staff’s quarters upstairs. Now that he’d given in to the exhaustion, Sam’s feet scuffed down the hallway, too tired to lift them for each step, head drooping. Dean hurried him along, doubting he’d be able to carry the moose if he passed out.

“Cassie,” Gabriel said mildly, watching as Dean struggled to unlock the door at the end of the hall while trying to keep Sam awake and upright, “Did you tell Dean Winchester the _human_ that you’re an angel?” 

“Well, technically, I told him that _we’re_ angels,” Castiel replied evenly, head tilting. “Was I not supposed to?”

“Okay, Cassie, I know you’re new to the whole guardian angel thing, but that’s the numero uno rule for all angels. Humans can’t know we exist,” Gabe sighed, rubbing a hand over his face once the door leading upstairs had closed.

“Yes, but we also aren’t supposed to show ourselves to humans, either,” Castiel pointed out.

“Supposed to. There’s a difference between not _supposed_ to and not _allowed_ to,” Gabriel groaned, stomping around the counter to flop into Sam’s chair and kick his feet up on the desk.

“But he already knew. He said we must be ‘some kinda angels’,” Cas frowned. “I merely confirmed.”

“He didn’t mean that literally.” Gabriel sighed, rolling his eyes.

“So, I was supposed to lie?” Castiel asked, brows furrowing.

“Yes. Or evade, or laugh it off as a joke, or tell a half-truth, anything but confirm it.”

“Misleading my charge seems wrong.”

“Letting a human find out angels are real is wronger. More wrong. Whatevs. Point is, our asses are grass if the higher-ups find out,” Gabe worried.

“If I might interject, aren’t you the higher up?” Baz pointed out.

“One of. And the lowest rung to boot. This is not good. We’ll need to erase his memory,” Gabriel stated, one heel tapping restlessly against the desk.

“No!” Cas exclaimed, then covered his mouth, though it was too late to keep the outburst in.

“No?” Gabe asked, eyebrow raised.

“Sorry. I just meant… Dean won’t tell anyone. Please don’t erase his memory.”

“Why, is there something you don’t want him to forget? Besides us being angels?”

Blushing, Castiel looked away, not giving an answer.

“Cassie…” Gabe worried, casting a concerned gaze on his friend and brother. He should’ve thought this plan through more. Cas had spent most of his existence as a soldier; following orders, needing a close bond of trust with his band of brothers, never in contact with humans for any length of time. Maybe letting him pair off with Dean had been a bad idea. Maybe that thought didn’t need a ‘maybe’. At the very least he should’ve talked with Cassie more before they showed themselves to the humans. But really, he’s always been such a stickler for the rules and following protocol, it hadn’t occurred to Gabriel that his friend might break the biggest law of heaven. However, Gabe’s been watching over Dean almost as much as Sam, since the two were always very close and Dean was overly protective of his little brother. Cassie may be new to being around humans, but maybe, in this one instance, his judgment could be trusted.

“Look, Gabriel, I’m siding with Cassie on this one. I’ve been Dean’s guardian angel all his life so I know; if he says he won’t tell anyone then he won’t. Not even Sam. I think if we’re to continue working with these humans, having one among them who knows what we are will be quite helpful,” Balthazar supplied.

“Two against one, huh? But you make a good point, Baz. Fine, we’ll leave his memory; for now,” Gabriel conceded, secretly glad. He actually liked Dean and wouldn’t have enjoyed wiping any part of his memory. “So, did everything go okay today, working with your humans?” he asked, continuing when Baz and Cas nodded. “Good. Things went pretty smoothly with Sam too. I know we don’t generally sleep, but we’ll be using corporeal forms for a while so we’ll need to phase back to our regular forms for at least a few hours a day if we don’t want to have to start sleeping and eating. Who wants first shift? I volunteer for third, ‘cause I’m kinda bushed.”

“Jo hasn’t gone to bed yet, and usually stays awake a bit longer. I’d rather take second shift so I can keep a proper eye on her. If you’re okay taking first shift, Cassie?” Baz said, managing not to sound _too_ lewd talking about keeping an eye on her, though he’d put a slight emphasis on the phrase.

“If I may check on Dean once before I start, that would be acceptable,” Castiel replied, disappearing and then reappearing a few minutes later. “He has gotten Sam into bed and is currently drinking whiskey. It is likely Dean will finish that, then go to bed.”

Gabe showed both Baz and Cas how to use the equipment at the desk to monitor patients’ rooms for movement and sound. Night-time bathroom trips were the worst when it came to fall dangers. Balthazar disappeared, presumably to ‘keep a proper eye’ on Jo. Once Castiel assured him he understood the parameters of his duty, Gabriel gave his friend a big smile. “Okey-dokes then, I’m gonna go watch over Sam. If you need me, just give a yell.”

 

*****

 

“Man,” Sam said, coming around the counter to stand in the open area behind his desk and start his morning stretches, left arm reaching toward the ceiling with the right bracing it, then switching, “if I keep getting nights of sleep this good I’m going to wind up spoiled. How did everything go?” He bent his left arm to touch his back, right hand pushing gently on his elbow to help his hand slide down as far as he could reach, then switching arms again. Gabe, who was sitting at the desk, had his chair turned to watch Sam with rapt attention. Blushing, Sam decided that was enough of overhead stretching and dropped his arms back down, tucking his polo shirt back into his slacks before starting side to side stretches.

“Great. No problems to report, all bathroom excursions were assisted and safe, no nightmares or random wanderings. Looks like you aren’t the only one who had a good night’s sleep,” Gabriel grinned. They’d been helping out for almost a month now, and Sam looked like a whole different person. The dark half-moons under his eyes were almost gone, his color had improved greatly, and his smile lit the room brighter than any ray of sunshine could hope to.

“I really can’t thank you guys enough. But seriously, how can you get by just volunteering? I’ve never seen you leave for, or heard you mention, any type of paying gig. It kinda feels like we’re taking advantage of you,” Sam worried.

“Hey, you’re giving us free room and board, plus the opportunity to help people; make them smile and laugh. What more does anyone need in life?” Gabe asked rhetorically.

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe clothes, games, movies, the ability to go out once in a while and do something other than the same thing you do day in and day out?” Sam suggested.

“Why, Sam Winchester, are you askin’ me out on a _date_?” Gabriel replied theatrically in a falsetto southern accent, placing a hand on his own chest and batting his eyes at the tall man.

“I can see why you went into entertaining,” Sam laughed, missing the hint of sincerity in Gabe’s voice. “But seriously, if you-”

“Hey, Sammy, Kate’s gonna be in soon,” Dean interrupted as he arrived, Cas following behind him like an angelic shadow. In the past few weeks, it had become expected any time Dean appeared to see Cas directly behind the older brother’s right shoulder, though Gabriel had explained personal space to him more than once. Since Dean didn’t seem to mind, Gabe let it slide. “The volunteers might wanna skedaddle for a bit.”

“I guess we should get some sleep,” Gabe yawned making sure the stretch that followed showed just as much skin as Sammy’s had. The slight smirk caused by Sam’s interested gaze was on the side of his lips facing away from Sam, so only Cas and Dean saw it.

“Cas came in early to help me with the boiler,” Dean pointed out. Usually Cas and Baz would both be pretending to sleep at this time while in reality invisibly watching over their charges. Gabriel always took the third shift, mainly because he loved watching the tall man go through his morning stretches and yoga. Kate knew they volunteered during the day, but so far the fact that the three men were occupying the unused resident’s room and covering night shifts hadn’t come to her attention. Everyone felt it for the best that it remain that way.

“Oh, yeah, I guess I do remember him saying something about doing that. Ok, well, I’ll just scurry off then. See you at lunch, Samster.” Gabe said before heading down the hallway. He waited until he was in their room before shifting out of corporeal form and heading back to watch over Sam as his guardian angel. Their new routine was definitely a bit more rigorous than drifting on a cloud, but Gabriel loved it. The yawn and stretch hadn’t been faked, but being in his natural form recharged him as much as sleeping.

“So, Sammy, did you hear about the big Masquerade the Moores are throwing to celebrate Jessica’s graduation?” Dean asked once Gabriel had gone (and invisibly returned).

“Yeah. And?”

“You going?” Dean pressed.

“It’s invite only,” Sam pointed out.

“Yeah, but dude, she’ll totally invite you. Weren’t you two an item last year before you graduated?”

“We were study partners.”

“Who dated.”

“Okay, yeah, we went on three or four dates, but that’s it. We were mostly just friends,” Sam blushed.

“Remind me why you didn’t keep in touch after last summer?” Dean smirked.

“She wanted to focus on her senior year, but that doesn’t mean she’s gonna come back now that she’s done with high school. Going into law means she’ll have years of more schooling and that will be out of state. It wouldn’t be practical to resume the relationship,” Sam protested.

“Who gives a crap about practical? You two can just hook up for the summer. Something casual. Bit of friends with benefits is great for blowin’ off steam,” Dean prodded.

“Dude, no. It’s not like that with Jess. I really liked her. _If_ she wanted to get back together, which I doubt, it wouldn’t be for sex. It would be for a long term relationship with a goal of eventual marriage. We’re both traditional that way. But like I said, I doubt she would want to get back together, especially right before she goes away to college. If she wanted that, she never would have broken things off in the first place, right?”

Gabriel watched the exchange, frowning. Sam had brushed off the end of the relationship, though internally he’d been really torn up about it. Enough that Gabe had checked in on Jessica a few times, just to see how she was taking it and what her thoughts were. He couldn’t hear everyone’s thoughts, but strong ones that pertained to his ward always came through. And truth was, Jessica had only broken it off because she was scared of how serious she was about him and afraid he didn’t feel the same. But she was wrong. 

Sam would have loved to know she was picturing them married, partners in their own law firm, taking on big cases but still making time to raise their children themselves. She’d imagined them alternating casework so someone was always home with the kids, and having a beautiful mansion with a maid. No chef though, because Sam would insist on cooking every night or would bring home takeout if he didn’t have time. The future she saw for them was full and detailed and beautiful. And scary, because she didn’t think Sam wanted the same thing. Fact was, Sam _did_ want that; had pictured their future almost the same as her, though he’d imagined their kids as two boys, and she’d wanted a boy and a girl. A nice, comfortable, pleasant future. Unfortunately, Kate had derailed Sam’s plans by insisting she couldn’t possibly manage the business if he went to college, and increasing his work load at MM so she could have more time for herself. Gabe wondered if Sam would’ve tried to win Jess back if he hadn’t gotten so busy with work.

“Hey, you never know. Maybe she’s really misses you and wants you back? Wouldn’t hurt to take a shot and see what develops, right?” Dean wheedled.

“I already told you, Dean, It’s by invitation only. No invitation, no party, so drop it. Didn’t you have a boiler to fix?” Sam quipped, drawing the conversation to a close with a blush as he realized Cas had been standing there staring the whole time. The guy was so quiet, it was easy to overlook his presence.

“Yeah, I do,” Dean grumbled, grabbing his toolbox and storming off, Cas trailing behind like a little lost puppy.

 

*****

 

Several days later, an invitation actually _did_ come in the mail, for all the Winchesters including Kate and Adam. Dean spent the rest of the week teasing Sam about Jess. Sam spent the rest of the week telling Dean to lay off, though he was secretly pleased by the invitation. Gabe spent the rest of the week thinking up different outfits for Sam to wear, planning how to get him to accept said costume and a snazzy ride as a gift, secretly checking in on Jessica a few times to find her thoughts filled with Sam, and wondering why his stomach tied itself in knots when he imagined how happy Sam’s life could be with Jess.

Kate, on the other hand, spent the week coming up with all manner of extra jobs for Sam, as if he didn’t already have enough on his plate; picking up her and Adam’s costumes, washing and waxing the car until it gleamed, booking her an appointment at the best salon in town (which had required a sizeable bribe that, of course, came out of Sam’s own pocket), arranging private dancing lessons for her and Adam, and spending hours in the attic, digging through old boxes full of Dad’s stuff to find his old cuff links and their Mom’s old jewelry for Kate to wear since she couldn’t afford to buy new. Sam half-wondered if she wasn’t gloating, rubbing it in his and Dean’s faces that they were orphans, and everything they should have inherited was hers.

As Sam went through box after box, trying to fight back tears for the mom he never knew, the dad who never cared, and the step-mother drowning him in dust, sweat, and sorrow, Gabe watched as each tear streaked a path through the dirt down Sam’s cheek and wished angels could cry. He would take Sam’s place in a heartbeat, do anything he could to save the young man from pain. But he couldn’t go through the boxes for him. Sam would never let him. Maybe, though… maybe he could keep him company? He was supposed to be watching the front desk, but since dinner was over and most of the kitchen work was done, Gabe had asked Jo and Baz to look after things up front so he could check on Sam. He’d only meant to be gone a few minutes but he couldn’t just leave Sam up here, crying by himself.

“Sam?” Gabe called through the door to the attic, knocking softly. He’d almost forgotten himself and appeared right behind Sam. That would’ve been disastrous. “Is everything okay? You’ve been up here a while, I was wondering if I could help?”

“Just a sec,” Sam’s choked voice called, and Gabe heard him sniff and the rustle of cloth. He could almost see the young man scrubbing at his face with the sleeves of his flannel shirt, trying to compose himself. Maybe he shouldn’t have interrupted?

“It’s okay, I can go back downstairs if you’d rather be alone. I just wanted to make sure you were ok,” Gabe assured, regretting his impulsive decision. 

“No,” Sam said as he opened the door, stepping aside to let Gabe in, “it’s fine. This is taking much longer than I thought it would. I wouldn’t mind a hand,” he mumbled, staring down at the dust-covered floorboards, hair only partially-obscuring his face. Gabriel pretended not to notice the smudged dirt on his cheeks. 

“Well then,” Gabe replied, forcing cheer into his voice as he clapped a hand on Sam’s shoulder, “let’s get to work!” He wasn’t sure if it was for the help, the attempt at cheering him up, or both, but Sam’s tremulous smile and deep, cleansing breath said Gabriel’s presence was appreciated. 

As they went through the boxes, Gabe would occasionally comment on things they found or do little comedy routines between old stuffed animals. Having been watching over Sam his entire life, the archangel knew which items would cheer up the big moose and took care to avoid pointing out anything with bad memories attached. It still took a long time to find the jewelry; their mother’s things weren’t in their own boxes, but interspersed among John’s personal items as though he’d never quite been able to put her memory away. 

Eventually, they managed to find an old steamer trunk that held John’s and Mary’s wedding outfits, photo albums, envelopes of loose pictures, and a homemade wooden box that might’ve been antique. Inside was all the jewelry either had ever owned (at least up until John married Kate), including their wedding bands. They weren’t elaborate, of course. When they got married, John had spent most of what he’d earned in the marines on an old car so there wasn’t much left for rings. Sam told Gabe how Dean had once heard their mom say ‘the size of the diamond is inversely proportional to the size of the heart’. Of course, Dean hadn’t known what it meant at the time, since he was only four years old, but for some reason he’d remembered it. Gabriel hugged Sam through the memories; both of the stories -occasionally told by Dad but mostly from Dean- and the times growing up when Sam had felt the absence of their mother most keenly.

Sam lost track of the time they stayed like that, but Gabriel knew exactly how long it was; not long enough. Really though, it was nearing an hour later when Sam pulled back with a sniffle, plaid flannel sleeve scrubbing away the tears and snot. “Sorry, Gabe,” he sniffed. “I didn’t mean to dump all that on you.”

“Hey, no worries, Samshine. Anytime you need me, anything you need me for, I’m here for you. Always,” Gabe replied with a gentle smile, ruffling Sam’s hair lightly, sending dust into the air that made them both sneeze, then laugh at the appropriately timed distraction. “Okie-doke, how about we pick out a few of the less nice things, stick them in that cheap jewelry box we found earlier, and tell what’s-her-name that’s all there was?”

“You are so devious,” Sam laughed, though he went along with the suggestion. 

 

*****

 

When the day of the party arrived, Kate and Adam spent hours getting ready. Dean spent far less time, tossing on the batman costume he’d worn every halloween since he was fifteen less than a half hour before he had to leave. Sam spent no time getting ready, as he had been informed by Kate, in no uncertain terms, that he was to remain at Milligan Manors and ‘hold down the fort’. 

Gabriel heard Kate’s thoughts about how she wanted Adam to pair up with Jessica and knew he’d have no chance if Sam were there. The woman was so unfair that Gabe had trouble holding his temper. But he tried to be content with having taken away her Guardian angel. And that wasn’t just for Sam’s benefit. There was a limited number of angels and human population had grown to a staggering number. These days, guardians were only assigned to souls with a minimum level of brightness to them, and those could be taken away if the assigned angel and their supervisor (namely Gabriel), agreed they’d proven themselves unworthy. Of course, by that time, their soul would have dimmed below the minimum level anyway, but there were occasions where Gabe asked a guardian to stick it out a little longer. Souls could always redeem themselves. Even those without guardian angels could spend a lifetime improving their glow. Then, if they chose to give it another try, they’d get one. 

Anywho, Kate hadn’t warranted a second chance. She’d been selfish and spoiled her whole life, and when she tricked John Winchester into marriage by putting holes in the condoms, Gabriel had asked Ambriel if she minded reassignment. Ambriel was more than happy for a change of ward and Kate was quickly left without a guardian. That didn’t mean she was going to die or anything, just that, if she happened into a life-threatening situation, there would be no angelic help. Many humans survived without guardians just fine. And Gabriel wasn’t angry enough to wish her death.

“So, Sampster, ready to go?” Gabe asked once Dean, Kate and Adam had left. Dean drove the Impala, which gleamed like a night sky awash with moonlight, with Kate and Adam in the back seat as though Dean was their chauffeur. 

“Go? Go where?”

“To the party, of course. Keep up.”

“Gabe, I can’t go to the party. I have to stay here and keep an eye on things. And before you offer to take over, even if you were here, when Kate sees me at the party I’d be in deep shit,” Sam pointed out.

“Sam, Sam, Sam. I’m disappointed,” Gabe said, shaking his head. “Did you forget? It’s a _costume_ party. She’ll never even know you were there. And it’s your chance to patch things up with Jessica. Tell her how you really feel. I guarantee she’ll want you back once she realizes how serious you are,” he advised, ignoring the pang in his chest.

“I don’t have a costume,” Sam protested.

“Got that covered,” Gabe grinned, handing him a huge gift bag.

Looking inside, Sam frowned at the pile of brown fur. “You want me to dress as a furry? And you think Jess will like that?” 

“Not a furry, Samsquatch. A wookie. Chewbacca to be exact. Can’t go wrong with Star Wars, right? Besides, it’ll keep Kate from recognizing you, and you’re one of the few people with the height to pull it off.”

“... You just want to see me look like a big walking carpet.”

“No, I also want to see you go to the party and get your shot with Jess. Now hurry up and get changed; your uber will be here in five,” Gabe chuckled, shooing Sam off toward the guest bathroom.

Sam started off, then paused, looking back at the kind man. “Thanks, Gabe. You’re like my fairy godmother or something,” he smiled.

“I’m not your godmother,” Gabe grinned, “though fairy isn’t inaccurate.”

“Ok then, fairy archangel,” Sam laughed.

“Archangel?” Gabriel squeaked, wondering if Cassie had spilled the beans again.

“Yeah, your name. Gabe. It’s short for Gabriel, right? You’re named after the archangel?” Sam replied, puzzled as to why Gabe seemed to have frozen.

“Oh, right. Sure, Sam; I’m your fairy archangel,” Gabriel smiled softly, not quite managing his normal level of joviality, but good enough to reassure Sam, who hurried off to change.

Several minutes later, Chewbacca emerged, furry face, bandolier, and blaster, topped off -or bottomed off you might say- with golden-glitter hi-top sneakers. Gabriel had expected the costume to look a little funny but was surprised to find Sam actually looked hot as hell. Mainly because his tall, strong frame filled out the costume perfectly.

“Hey, Gabe, I had a thought while I was changing. The party’s invitation only and I don’t have one. Kate has it.” Sam’s voice was muffled by the costume, which should make it even harder for his step-mom to recognize him.

“Got that covered too, Samtastic,” Gabe said, handing him an envelope with a personal invitation for Sam inside.

“How did you…”

“Wasn’t hard. I just sent her a letter mentioning that you might have to go separately from your family and asking for a personal invite just for you. Then it was just a matter of checking the mail before anyone else got to it.”

“Geeze. You really are my fairy go-Gabriel,” Sam grinned.

“Damn crooked,” Gabe laughed. “But the magic runs out at midnight. Okay, not really. But that _is_ when the uber will be back to pick you up. And don’t miss it, ‘cause if Kate gets back before you do…”

“Yeah, I get it, believe me. I’ll be back on time. And Gabe, really, thank you so much. You have no idea how much this means to me.”

 

*****

 

“Sam? Sam, that’s you, isn’t it?” Jess asked, coming up to the wookie standing near the refreshment table. She was dressed in a shimmery, blue-toned opalesque dress with matching butterfly wings, a wrought silver and black tiara with a black butterfly mask sprinkled with silver glitter.

Sam replied with his best wookie roar and they both laughed. “Yeah, it’s me. I’m kinda incognito though, so don’t tell anyone, ‘kay?”

“Ooh, undercover? You a spy these days?” Jess teased.

“Depends, are spies sexy?” Sam chuckled.

“Very,” Jess breathed, wrapping an arm around his to pull him onto the dance floor.

“Then yeah, I’m definitely a spy,” Sam chuckled as he took her in his (furry) arms and began dancing.

“So, Ss- stranger,” she said after a few minutes, having to speak somewhat loudly to be heard over the music, even though it was a slow song, “How have you been?”

“Not too bad,” Sam replied, wondering just how much the subjective term ‘too bad’ could be bent to include. Or rather exclude. As example, he wasn’t dead, and dead would definitely be ‘too bad’, so in that case the statement was accurate. Not that it mattered; accuracy wasn’t really what Jess wanted to hear. “I’ve missed you, though. A lot. How about you? How’ve you been?”

“Hmm… same, really. On both counts. Why did I ever let you go?”

 _Let me go? You’re the one who pushed me away,_ Sam thought, unable to help a small bit of bitterness; not at her having broken things off, but at her avoiding taking responsibility for that now. “Guess I’m just slippery like that,” Sam shrugged.

“I really am sorry, I just… to be honest, I wasn’t sure if we were on the same page.”

“I thought we were. I thought we were working toward a future together, with a house, dog, kids, the works,” Sam replied, leading Jess off the dance floor since the music had ended.

“But, that’s what I thought too. Well, I mean, it’s what I wanted. Except the dog. Pets are messy and a lot of work. But everything else, that’s what I’d hoped for. And for us both to be lawyers and have our own practice… I’m flattered that you postponed college for a year so we could start together,” Jess smiled.

Sam could’ve corrected her, but her excuse was a lot better than the real one. Fact was, though he’d gotten a scholarship to Stanford, Kate had refused to let him go, insisting he was needed at MM. And while tuition would have been covered, books and room and board would not. Sam never could have managed that without any financial help and he was loathe to take out loans. He’d heard horror stories about people unable to pay them back and accumulating interest. Besides, it wasn’t the Winchester way to spend money before you had it.

Hours flew by as they talked, discussing her senior year and plans for next year; she had applied for Stanford too. Sam found that he still cared very much for her. It was deep. Not passionate, not scary, not desperate or needy, just deep and comfortable. Their life together could be wonderful. He could go to Stanford with Jess, stay with her to cut back on expenses. On paper, his salary was 25k/year but after taking ‘room and board’ out of his checks, Kate left him with just over three thousand. For the whole year. On the bright side, he never had time to spend any of that, so he had enough to cover books and living expenses for long enough to find a job that wouldn’t interfere with his studies. They were still making vague plans for the future, out on the balcony and leaning on the rail side by side, murmuring together in low voices, when a throat cleared behind them and they spun around simultaneously.

“My apologies, Jessica, but I was really hoping to spend some time with you this evening. It is nearing the hour of my departure so I wondered if I might request the pleasure of this dance?” Though masked, it was quite obviously Adam, and his attempt to be a suave, debonair phantom of the opera fell flat on Sam’s ears. What didn’t fall flat was the mention of leaving soon. 

Sam glanced across the ballroom at the giant grandfather clock on the far wall and mentally swore. The time was five after midnight; he had to go! Giving a quick bow to Jess, he dashed across the room, weaving through dancers and rushing out the door and down to the driveway, where the uber that had driven him earlier was pulling around the circle drive, on its way out. Running after it, he tried to get the driver’s attention but nothing worked until he pulled off a shoe and threw it at the rear window. Bouncing off the glass to land in the grass several feet from the driveway, the shoe got the car to stop, and Sam dove into the back seat, apologizing profusely for being late. As they drove off, he didn’t notice Jess coming down the steps and picking up the shoe he’d thrown, Adam trailing forlornly behind.

 

*****

 

“Cutting it kinda close there, Samsquatch,” Gabe commented with an arched eyebrow as Sam dashed in.

“Sorry, lost track of time,” he panted, heading for the bathroom to change out of the costume. “And, I’m really sorry, but… I lost my shoe. Well, your shoe, I mean. I left late and didn’t have time to stop and grab it,” Sam apologized as he handed over a single sneaker and the bag with the costume folded into it.

“Hey, no worries Samshine. That was a gift. You keep those.”

“Gabriel, they’re on-” Cas started, seeming to appear out of nowhere.

Sam stared. Cas was in a cat outfit. More specifically, a shiny latex, stitched together in patches, Michelle Pfeiffer catwoman outfit. And no man had any business looking sexy in it, but apparently no one had told Cas that, because he was … Sam had to consider whether he might be bi, because wow.

“Might wanna wipe that drool off your chin,” Gabe suggested. “And you should probably go hide that costume somewhere; your family’s almost home.”

“Crap! Be right back!” Sam exclaimed, dashing for the stairs. Gabe chuckled, watching his ass as he ran. Five minutes later he was coming back down, short of breath again as he collapsed into the chair Gabe had vacated. “Thanks for keeping my seat warm,” he grinned as he tried to get his breathing under control enough to pretend he’d been sitting there all evening. “Any problems while I was gone?”

“Not a one. Everything went smooth as pudding. And Ellen, Jo, Baz, and Garth promised they wouldn’t say a word about me covering for you. We should be in the clear,” Gabe grinned, going around the counter then leaning on it, arms crossed and chin resting on them. He had a clear shot to his room from there and since they were in the Impala, he’d hear when everyone got home.

“Great! Thank you so much for doing that for me. I really appreciate it,” Sam smiled, breathing back to normal.

“Any time, Samshine. How’d it go?”

Sam thought for a minute before replying. “Pretty good, I think. Jess wants me to go to Stanford with her in the Fall. We talked through some of the logistics of it… I’m going to have to give it some serious thought.”

“Give it thought? Isn’t that what you’ve always wanted?” Gabe asked.

“It’s what I used to- Wait, how did you know?” Sam asked, eyes narrowing on Gabe.

“Well, you’re smart; definitely the type to want to pursue higher education. And as for going there with Jessica, she’s intelligent, beautiful, and rich. Why wouldn’t you want to- Oops, they’re back. Don’t worry, I’ll come back once they all go off to bed,” Gabe tossed over his shoulder as he dashed down the hall to his room.

“Hey, Sammy, how was your night?” Dean asked, eyes twinkling, after he’d held the door for Kate and Adam to enter.

“Things were pretty slow. Quiet. We really could have left Ellen in charge and all gone to the party together,” Sam replied, knowing Kate would expect him to complain about having been excluded.

“Samuel, you know one of the owners has to be here at all times,” Kate admonished. “I have to do my rounds. Adam, head on up to bed, dear. Dean, go check Garth’s work and take care of anything he missed. I can already see he didn’t dust the plants like I told him to,” she instructed before heading to med storage to get her computer cart.

“If she got real plants instead of artificial they wouldn’t need dusting,” Dean grumbled once she was out of earshot.

“Yeah, but then you’d have to water them every day instead of dusting once a week,” Sam pointed out.

“They’re friendlier, give off oxygen and smell nice. Plus I’m pretty sure they’re healthier for the old people than these dust magnets. I wouldn’t mind watering them every day,” Dean countered.

“Have you tried talking to her about it? I know she’s not going to spend money on plants, but if we offered to pay for them ourselves…”

Gabriel, who had returned to watch invisibly, frowned. Sam needed money for his education. He shouldn’t spend his own cash on the nursing home; profits should cover that. But that money all belonged to Kate, and she wasn’t about to let any go. Maybe a one-time donation from the residents or their families? But this wasn’t a non-profit nursing home. The cost of improvements really should come from the business.

“Sammy, you need that money for Stanford, don’t you? I can buy the new plants. Even if we replaced all the plastic crap it shouldn’t cost more than a hundred or two. You keep what you’ve got in your savings account, earning interest.”

“Dean, I can’t let you-”

 _Yes you can,_ Gabriel frowned, unable to help the outburst. Not that it mattered; humans couldn’t hear him in this form anyway.

“Yes you can,” Dean interrupted his brother, crossing his arms over his chest.

“But I’m not even-” Sam tried again.

“Even if you’re not going right now, you will be going eventually and you’ll need all the money you can get,” Dean insisted.

Leaning back in his desk chair, Sam crossed his own arms, giving Dean his best bitch face. “Dean, I don’t want to argue about this.”

“Good. Then don’t. I’m paying for the plants and that’s final. No argument necessary,” Dean smirked.

Rolling his eyes, Sam threw his hands up in the air. “Fine. Have it your way.”

Dean looked around for Kate. The brothers hadn’t noticed when she passed them while they were talking but Gabe had, and she was halfway to the end of the hall by the kitchen right then. It didn’t seem like she should be that far if she was waking every patient up to give them their evening meds, but Gabriel wasn’t really one to judge. Seeing the coast was clear, Dean leaned over the counter to make sure he wasn’t heard by anyone but Sam. “Make sure, once Kate goes to bed, you grab something to eat from the kitchen. I noticed you didn’t eat anything at the party. Looked like you were a bit distracted.”

Sam’s head jerked up in surprise. “How did you kno- Umm, I mean, what are you talking about?” he whispered back harshly.

“Hey, I got my sources,” Dean grinned.

Suddenly, Cas in a Catwoman costume made a lot more sense. Gabriel must have told him he was going to help sam go to the party, maybe even had Cas go along to keep an eye on him. “You’re not gonna say anything to Kate, right?”

Dean rolled his eyes. “Dude, do you know me? You really think I’d do that?”

“No, of course not. I was just making sure. Gabe said he’d be back after Kate’s gone so I’ll grab a sandwich or something if he doesn’t mind watching the desk,” Sam replied.

“Good. I should probably get changed and start doing my final checks before the demon lady-”

“Before what now?” Kate interrupted, rounding the corner from the left-hand hallway. She must have already put her cart back in the meds room, otherwise they’d have heard her.

“Demon, Brady. You know, the Batman villain? I was saying, I should change before he shows up looking for a fight thinking I’m really Batman, ‘cause I’m just that awesome,” Dean grinned. He was good at quick thinking. But the humor slowly melted off his face under Kate’s glare. “So, yeah, like I said, need to get outta this costume. ‘Night Kate.” Dean sped off down the hallway on the left to head upstairs and change.

“Rounds are done. I’m going out,” Kate informed Sam shortly. She was still in the tight, revealing, red sequined dress she’d worn to the party. Who knew what the costume was supposed to be, other than ‘sexy something’. At least she’d taken off the black mardi gras mask with the huge red feathers coming off the side. Still, it was after 1am. Where was she going, dressed like that?

“That was quick,” Sam commented. It was. Usually, it took her at least twice as long to give all the residents their bedtime meds.

“Are you questioning me?” Kate demanded.

“No. It was just a casual comment. You know, one of those things people say?”

“Right,” Kate replied, eyes narrowed. She obviously didn’t trust his answer. Either that or she felt guilty about something. “Anyway, I’m going. They got their bed meds late, so morning meds may as well be a bit later too. I should be in some time between nine and ten.”

“Okay, have a good-” Sam started, but she was already out the door, “time.” he huffed out, slumping back into his chair. Still invisible, Gabe watched for a moment, then flew off down the right-hand hallway toward his room near the kitchen.

 

*****

 

“Hey, Sammich, I brought you a sammich,” Gabe grinned as he returned in corporeal form ten minutes later.

“Is that ham and cheese?” Sam asked, wide eyed as he took the plate Gabriel offered.

“With extra lettuce and tomato, not too much mayo,” Gabe preened. He knew just how Sam liked it.

“That’s my favorite. How did you know?”

“I pay attention to important things.”

“And what I like to eat is important?” Sam scoffed.

“No, _you’re_ important, so your likes are only important by association,” Gabe smiled.

Sam blushed. “Thanks for the sandwich. It looks delicious,” he mumbled, taking a big bite to hide his embarrassment, then blushing even more when a moan of pleasure slipped out around the mouthful. Really, he loved ham and cheese, but this… hands down, the best sandwich he’d ever tasted. At least, that was Gabriel’s interpretation of the appreciative sound.

“Any time, Sam. Any time,” Gabe replied softly, laying his head on his crossed arms resting atop the counter. He watched Sam eat, the young man too engrossed in his sandwich to notice anything beyond the slices of artisanal whole wheat bread beneath his fingers and the fixings between.

Sam ate his sandwich, lost in a world of his own, and not until it was gone and he was licking his fingers clean of crumbs, mayo, cheese, and tomato innards did he remember Gabe was there. Freezing, thumb in his mouth as he tongued it clean, the bob of the blonde’s adam’s apple caught Sam’s attention and the want in his eyes held it. “S-sorry,” he stammered, rubbing a hand over his mouth then brushing his hands off over the plate to remove any remaining crumbs. “No napkin.”

“I didn’t mind at all. In fact, I was tempted to offer to help,” Gabe breathed dreamily. “I mean, go get you a napkin. I should’ve brought one with the sandwich,” he amended, shaking himself out of his stupor. He really needed to stop that. Sure, he’d flirted with humans now and then in the centuries he’d been a guardian angel; most did. Even had sex. A lot. But never, _never ever_ , with anyone he was guarding. It just wasn’t professional. And Gabriel was definitely professional, even if he didn’t always act it. 

Besides, he’d been watching the kid since he was, well, a kid. And that was kinda creepy. Except, of course, Sam wasn’t a kid anymore. He was definitely a full grown man. Very full grown. And sure, he’d taken more interest in Sam than any previous charge, but while the feelings were more intense, they’d been just as platonic as his feelings for every other ward. It wasn’t until the past year that the added component of desire had started. 

That’s one of the reasons he’d been watching from clouds rather than following Sam around all day. Distance helped. But putting Castiel on guardian duty for Dean was probably a subconscious way to get closer. Once he’d given in that inch, nothing could’ve held him back from taking the mile. No self delusions there; it had been as much to indulge himself as it was to help Sam.

“Earth to Gabe,” Sam said, waving his hand in front of the man’s face. “You okay?”

Blinking, Gabriel felt heat in his cheeks and wondered when angels had gained the ability to blush. He’d been spending too much time in corporeal form. “Sorry, guess I spaced out a bit.”

“Hey, that’s okay. I was suggesting maybe you should get some sleep? Baz is taking over at two, right? That’s only an hour away. I can cover until then so you can get some sleep before your shift.”

“Actually, if you don’t mind, I thought we could hang out ‘til then and you could tell me about your evening? If you want. Seemed like you might’a wanted to talk through things?” Gabe offered.

“Yeah, that might be nice. Even if you just listen I think it might help me sort things out.”

Gabriel pulled over Dean’s chair, sitting in it backwards and folding his arms over the back, chin resting on top. “I’m all ears,” he grinned, wriggling his eyebrows.

 

*****

 

Baz offered to take Gabe’s shift if the two love-birds wanted to head to bed together, when he arrived for his turn at the desk. Gabe threw a balled up sheet of paper at him, landing it right between his eyes, and told him to shut up; they were just talking. Sam laughed as he and Gabe stood and moved out from behind the counter to let Baz have the space. 

Thanking the smaller man for listening, Sam hugged him, then wandered off to bed. Once he’d disappeared up the stairs, Gabriel disappeared too, following in angel form. Though he normally hovered in a corner of the room while Sam slept, that night Gabe felt the need to be closer. When Sam had settled under the covers, Gabe alighted on the bed, invisible, inaudible, and non-corporeal. Brushing a hand lightly through the young man’s hair without actually touching it, he gave what comfort he could and hoped Sam would sort through some of his feelings while he slept.

 

*****

 

“Hey, Sam, how’d you sleep?” Gabe asked as Sam arrived at the front desk shortly before 7 am.

“Surprisingly well. Even though I only got five hours, I feel pretty good,” Sam grinned, arms above his head as he started his morning stretches. Gabriel turned away, focusing on the monitors showing tiny views of the patients’ rooms. There were no cameras in the bathrooms, of course, but the patients and/or their families agreed to allow the bedroom surveillance, which was, after all, for their own safety. “How about you?”

“I had a good night,” Gabe smiled softly, though he was still staring at the screens so Sam didn’t see it. He really needed to put some distance between them. Somehow he’d let himself get way too close and that was only opening himself up to pain. Sam was human; he had a human future, with a human woman. Gabriel couldn’t stand in the way of that. He had to do what was best for his ward, even if that wasn’t best for himself.

“Something wrong with one of the guests?” Sam asked, wondering what was so interesting on the video feeds.

“They’ve just been restless again. Except for Cuthbert and Mildred; they haven’t moved at all and were very groggy when I woke them for bathroom trips when I relieved Baz. They both usually go several times a night and he said neither had been up yet. So I helped them to the bathroom and back, then hooked them up to the monitors. Just in case. Pulses, BP, and O2 are low, but not dangerously so.” Gabe had only been looking at the monitors to avoid seeing Sam’s bare stomach while he stretched, but it was true he’d been worried about the patients, especially Cuthbert and Mildred. Though not a medical professional, he’d learned how to hook up and read the monitors the first time they’d had to wake Sam and Dean with concerns.

“Isn’t that the sixth time this month?” Sam asked.

“Seventh. Remember, you stayed with Mildred all night on your birthday,” Gabe reminded him.

“Technically that was the day after my birthday, but yeah, I hadn’t counted that one. This isn’t right. I’m going to call the doctor and, see if she has time to come in and check on everyone or if there’s something we can do to stop the restless and too restful nights.

“I can stay if you want, help keep an eye on things,” Gabe offered.

“Nah, that’s ok. You’ve been up most of the night. Go get some sleep. If there are any major problems, I’ll wake you,” Sam replied, hugging Gabe when he got up to head to his room.

Breath catching at the unexpected hug, Gabriel forced himself to relax, hands running soothingly over Sam’s back until the taller man released him. “Thanks,” he mumbled, ducking his head. “Make sure you call me if there’s any trouble or you need help with anything at all, even if it’s just watching the desk for a few minutes.”

“Hey, man, I’ve been doing this longer than you have. I’ve got this,” Sam smiled, patting Gabe’s shoulder as the shorter man headed toward his room.

Gabriel gave the bed a longing look once he’d arrived, but switched to his natural form and went back out to watch over Sam. It would be nice to lose himself in sleep and not think for a while, but this wasn’t a good day for that. Between the troubled sleep of the residents and Sam’s concerns over Jessica, he needed his guardian angel as much as he ever had.

At eight, Sam started waking residents, helping the men get dressed while Jo did the same for the women. By nine, everyone was awake and in their recliners, though not one resident felt like eating in the dining room that morning. Which was fine; they always had a choice and could eat at a rolling table that pulled up to their chair. But it was disturbing that everyone had opted out of walking down the hall. The exercise was good for them. 

Sam had left messages for both the nursing home’s regular doctor and for Kate, giving a brief description of the problems and asking for the call to be returned as soon as possible. The phone rang as Jo was bringing out the food cart and Sam left Cuthbert’s room to answer before it stopped ringing, but it cut out just before he rounded the corner. Fortunately, Gabe’s cheery voice was already speaking into the phone, giving further information on the residents’ conditions before handing the phone over to Sam, mouthing the word ‘doctor’. With a grateful nod, Sam accepted the phone, speaking to Dr. Roberts for several long minutes of her precious time. 

“Thanks, Gabe,” Sam said as he hung up the phone. “Who knows when she would have had time to call back if you hadn’t answered before the message service. But how did you get here so fast?”

“I was already awake and about,” Gabe hedged without lying. “What’d Cara say?”

“ _Dr. Roberts_ said to monitor the patients throughout the day and she’d come by once her office closes,” Sam replied, emphasizing the title the woman had spent lots of time and money to earn.

“Any word from Kate?”

Sam shook his head. “She hasn’t called back yet, but said last night she’d be in before ten, so she’ll probably show up any time now. Oh, can you warn Baz and Cas? She’s usually gone or upstairs by the time you three are up.”

“Sure thing, Samshine.” Gabe headed back to their room, switching forms again once inside, then flitting off to find Balthazar. The other angel was in his natural form, following Jo around. When Gabriel caught up with them, Jo was bringing a tray of food to Gertrude in room seven, the door of which was directly across from the front desk. “Hey, Baz, did you hear that?” Gabe asked.

“Quite clearly. No worries though, I never start helping in the kitchen before eleven. Need my beauty sleep, you know,” Baz winked.

“Beauty sleep or you just like watching doctor sexy with Jo on her ten o’clock break?” Gabe tossed back, calling him out.

“Ah, well. Everyone’s allowed their own small pleasures, right?” 

“As long as you’re keeping your hands to yourself,” Gabriel reminded him.

“I actually have been,” Balthazar admitted, looking surprised at himself. “You know, for a stunningly attractive woman, she makes a surprisingly good friend.”

Gabe laughed. “You know, lots of people manage to be kind, caring and wonderful, despite having devastatingly good looks.”

“True. I need only look in a mirror for an excellent example,” Baz preened.

Gabriel rolled his eyes. “I’m not so sure you fit into both halves of that sentence. Anyway, keep an eye out for Kate. I have to go let Cassie know.”

“Oh, you might want to wai-”

Gabe didn’t hear the rest of the sentence as a flap of wings had him appearing next to Castiel. One second, several moans and flashes of bare skin later, he reappeared outside Dean’s bedroom door, blinking away afterimages of his brother and Dean, under the covers -thankfully, Dean’s body rocking against Castiel’s in an unmistakable manner. Dammit. He knew Cassie had read through all the guardian angel rules; the guy was kinda anal like that. Ugh, wrong choice of words. Anywho, he definitely knew guardians were _Not_ supposed to be fucking their wards.

“ _Supposed to_ and _allowed to_ aren’t the same thing,” Balthazar pointed out, appearing beside him.

“You knew about this?” Gabriel demanded, too freaked over Cassie to notice Baz had been listening in on his thoughts without permission.

“Yes, I did. And before you ask, no, I am not allowing myself the same indulgence; I wasn’t lying earlier. But, really, it’s not a bad thing, you know. He already broke Heaven’s biggest rule; don’t let the humans know angels exist. This infraction actually helps correct that. He and Dean are so tightly bound together -figuratively, not literally… though I suppose they are that too- neither would do anything to hurt or endanger the other,” Balthazar explained, his light accent somehow making it all sound logical and sane.

“That all sounds reasonable, but you’re only saying it because you have a soft spot for Cassie,” Gabe frowned.

“I do. But so do you; isn’t that why you brought him into the G.A. division?”

Gabriel sighed. “If Mikey or Raph catch wind of this we’ll all be in hot water. And I really hate the smell of boiled feathers. So, use that huge network of friends you’ve got up in Heaven to keep tabs on my big bros. If they so much as glance our way, I want to know about it. Forewarned is forearmed and all that, right?”

“Absolutely. I will be keeping an ear to the clouds, rest assured. And Gabriel?”

“Yeah?”

“Cassie isn’t the only one I have a soft spot for; nor is he the only one who deserves happiness.”

“What do you mean, Baz?”

“You know what I mean. We’re already avoiding archangel attention for Cassie’s sake. Adding another reason to remain off the radar wouldn’t matter. After all, in for a penny, in for a pound, right?” Baz replied, lips twitched up in a soft grin. Before Gabriel could reply, he was gone in a flap of wings, likely resuming his invisible vigil over Jo.

Gabe didn’t have time to be thinking about Balthazar’s innuendos. He needed to get back to his own charge. Preferably before the increasing volume of the moans behind Dean’s bedroom door managed to creep into his awareness. _Oops, too late_ he groaned mentally as his wings flapped, taking him back to the front desk and Sam.

Sitting cross-legged above the file cabinets, invisible golden wings breezing lightly through the air around him, Gabe watched Sam as he worked, checking invoices against supplies -they’d done the monthly inventory yesterday at Kate’s insistence- and making sure everything matched up. Frequently, he glanced over to the security feeds, checking on the residents. In addition, his eyes darted to the time on the computer which creeped closer and closer to ten and Kate still wasn’t there yet. Sam wasn’t a medical professional. He wouldn’t be able to relax until Kate checked on the patients. Or Dr. Roberts. Whoever showed first. Regardless of his dislike for the woman, Gabe hoped it would be Kate. Because Cara wouldn’t be there until after 6pm, and Sam didn’t need to be on edge until then. Besides, the guests were past due for their morning medications, and Kate was the only one who could administer them.

When the loud bell on the door finally dinged at a quarter past ten, Sam swivelled his chair around in relief. “Kate, you’re late. The guests need their meds, and I’ve been worr-” Sam cut off as he realized the woman who walked in wasn’t Kate.

“Hi, Sam,” Jessica said, holding up a glittery gold hi-top. “You lost your shoe.”

“Jess! Um, thanks,” Sam blushed, standing and letting his hair fall forward to partially obscure his cheeks as he accepted the footwear. “You didn’t have to come all the way here just to return it. I could have come and gotten it,” he added as he dropped the sneaker onto the floor under his desk, out of sight.

“I don’t mind; I was hoping we might have more time to talk. Besides, the chauffeur had to take Daddy’s Bently to be cleaned; dropping me off here was on the way. She’ll pick me back up in an hour or so when she heads home.” Jessica smiled, leaning over the counter to peck Sam on the cheek. “I hope that’s okay? Should I have called first?”

“No, it’s fine,” Sam blinked, startled by the kiss. Gabriel considered leaving to give them some privacy, but felt an unexplained need to stay.

“You sure? You seemed a bit distressed when I came in? Should I come back another time?”

“Yeah, no. I mean, yes, I’ve been a bit stressed this morning, but no, you don’t need to go. I left kind of quickly last night and we weren’t done talking, right?”

“It was a bit abrupt. Do you not like Adam? Isn’t he your younger brother?”

“That wasn’t the problem. Kate, my step-mom, and Adam didn’t know I was there; I was supposed to stay here and look after the guests. A good friend of mine who volunteers here took over for me so I could go. But Kate would be pissed if she knew I disobeyed her. Hence being incognito last night.”

Jessica’s eyes went wide. “Oh, dear. Kate? Is that who…” she turned to look back at the door and Sam followed her gaze, his own eyes widening as they took in the furious figure standing in the entryway.

“You!” Kate spat, droplets flying from her lips in her fury. “I told you not to go, and you went anyway?!?! Oh, boy, you pissed off the wrong person.” She was visibly shaking with anger and might have launched herself physically at Sam if the young woman she hoped to be her future daughter-in-law wasn’t standing right there.

“Kate, I get that you’re mad, and you have every right to be, but the residents are overdue for their morning meds and they all had bad nights. You can think up a suitable punishment while you work, but please check on them? I’ve been worried all day,” Sam pleaded, hoping to calm his step-mother enough that she wouldn’t take her anger out on the guests. 

Gabe knew how distressed Sam was over the health and safety of the old folks. And not without reason. They’d all been looking strained and unwell since rising, on top of the bad night they’d had. Having flown over to hover behind Sam as soon as they’d discovered Kate’s presence, Gabe glanced at the monitors to their left. He only spared a glance because Sam was still in danger, but that was all he needed to see Mildred collapsed on the floor. 

After a fraction of a second to argue with himself about how best to draw their attention to his favorite resident and then whether leaving Sam was ok, Gabe flapped his wings, appearing beside Mildred, pulling the door open with a wing, switching to corporeal as he kneeled beside the prone woman, and calling at the top of his lungs, “Sam! Medical emergency, room One!” Though not a medic, Gabe bent over her, checking for pulse and breath. She didn’t seem to have either. “Sam!!” he cried again, desperately. He’d heard the heavy footsteps pounding down the hallway but time felt slowed and Mildred’s soul was starting to rise like steam from her body. 

Eyes darting around the room, Gabriel didn’t see a reaper. Was it not her time to die? Was she slated to be saved? Was she dying before her time with no reaper to guide her soul to heaven? Or was the reaper actually there in the room, just hidden from the archangel in his corporeal form? Gabe didn’t have time for answers as the glowing wisps began to pool into a sphere above the old woman’s chest. The footsteps were closer, but still too far and there was no more time. Once her soul was gone, reviving the body would be useless. 

Giving in to his desperation, Gabriel called on his grace, placing one hand over Mildred’s chest to restart her heart and send healing energy through her body, the other above her soul, generating a net of light that cradled the life essence, gently guiding it back down and into the body. The gasp behind him was not unexpected as he finished bringing Mildred back. Deep breath drawing into her lungs as her eyes began to flutter open, Gabriel glanced over his shoulder at Sam, who stood alone in the doorway, frozen in shock. Tears escaping his brimming eyes, Gabe gave Sam a tremulous smile before disappearing.

 

*****

 

“Bugger all. That’s not good,” Balthazar said, catching the tail of the scene from under Sam’s arm gripping the door frame for balance, only having to duck slightly to see through the gap. He and Jo had come running from the break room off the kitchen at the sound of Gabriel’s shouts, on the way, passing a frozen Kate who was an interesting shade of something between puce and pale, and a young woman speaking on the phone, apparently with the paramedics, with whom Baz was unfamiliar. He’d arrived ahead of Jo, thankfully, and just in time to see his boss disappear as the glow of his healing grace faded from the elderly woman on the floor.

“Sam? What’s going on? Is Mildred okay?” Jo panted as she arrived. Dean and Cas were coming through the doorway to the upstairs at the end of the hall.

The younger brother was still in the doorway in shock, but a prod from Jo shook him out of it. “Mildred collapsed. She seems to be ok now, but should be- Crap. Someone needs to check on Cuthbert; he had the same symptoms!” Sam exclaimed, torn between going to Mildred or checking on Mr. Sinclair.

“We got this Sammy; you check on her,” Dean ordered as he and Cas jogged down the hall. Of course, Mr. Sinclair was in room fourteen which was at the other end of the home. 

Dilemma solved, Sam rushed over to Mildred, who was starting to rise, and guided her firmly back onto the floor, a hand behind her neck to keep it still. “Mildred, you need to stay there until the paramedics get here. They have to make sure you didn’t suffer any injuries when you fell before you can move. Do you feel pain anywhere?”

“No pain, Sam. On the contrary, I feel better than I have in years. Did you see him? There was a ghost here. Kinda looked like Gabe, but he disappeared, just like the ghost I saw years ago,” Mildred replied.

“I do believe you may have knocked your noggin, young lady,” Balthazar teased, coming up behind Sam to look down at the woman. Ghost was a safe explanation, especially for someone just regaining consciousness. However, ghost that looked like Gabe was drifting toward murky waters.

Rolling her eyes, Mildred gave Baz a pointed look. “You don’t have to believe me but I know what I saw. He was here. He… he called me back. I was dead. Sam, I died!” Mildred exclaimed, gripping his arm hard, though she didn’t move anything else.

“Yeah, I think you did, Mildred, but he… the ghost brought you back. If you tell that to anyone else though, they’re going to think you hit your head or put you on psych meds. Most people don’t believe in ghosts, right? So can we maybe keep that between us and tell the paramedics we brought you back with cpr?”

“You don’t have to tell me twice. I know how most people feel about ghosts,” Mildred replied, eyes twinkling. “Though if we’re going to claim you gave me mouth to mouth, maybe we should make sure your DNA is on my lips, just in case?”

“Mildred,” Sam chastised, shaking his head.

“Hey, can’t blame a girl for trying,” she grinned.

“If sacrificial DNA is required, might I offer my own?” Baz grinned, managing to find enough space to kneel between her and the bed. Leaning down, he gave her a light, chaste kiss on the lips. The woman had just barely escaped death. Definitely a feat worthy of reward.

“Aww, aren’t you sweet,” Mildred smiled, patting his cheek with the hand that had gripped Sam’s arm. She was still being careful to limit movement until the paramedics arrived.

As though on cue, the sound of a siren wailed up the circle drive, cutting out near the front door. Jo went to guide the paramedics to the room and returned moments later leading a handsome uniformed man with mocha skin, green eyes and a dazzling smile, carrying a kit. The unfamiliar young woman who’d called the ambulance trailed behind. Standing, Sam stepped back to give the man room to work as he began checking vitals.

“Shouldn’t there be two paramedics?” Sam asked. 

“There are three, but the other two are with Cuthbert,” Jo replied. “Don’t worry; he’s fine. He was sleeping when Dean and Cas got there. They hooked him up to the monitor and his stats were dangerously low, so they wanted him looked at.”

“Did he miss his meds last night and this morning too?” Mildred asked.

“What?!” Sam exclaimed. “What do you mean, ‘too’? Didn’t Kate wake you to give you your meds last night?”

“I haven’t seen her since noon, yesterday. She did the afternoon meds early and skipped the dinner meds. I did hear her cart roll into the room late last night, but she didn’t even try to wake me up, just stood there a minute or two, then left. I tried to call out to her, but I’m afraid I was a bit out of it. Without my Midodrine at dinner my blood pressure dropped. And then not getting it with breakfast this morning…”

“Where’s Kate,” Sam growled, trying to keep his temper in check.

“Blonde? Around five-five, five-six? Dressed somewhere between street walker and trailer trash ‘fancy’?” the medic asked.

“That would be her,” Balthazar answered, appreciating the man’s description of the god-awful dress the woman had been wearing since last night.

“I think I saw her getting into a car when we pulled in. Couldn’t make out the driver more than a head of dark hair, maybe a bit of grey peppered in, and she got into the front seat. I had to wait for them to leave before I could park in front of the doors,” the paramedic commented before turning back to his work. “Okay, Mrs. Baker, no sign of neck or spinal trauma. Think you’re ready to try getting up?”

“Call me Mildred, please. And if it means getting your arms around me, I’m game if you are,” she grinned, delighting in the smile she got in response. Mildred was an incessant flirt, but not the serious kind. She enjoyed teasing, checking out a nice, firm, jean-covered ass, but when it came down to it, her heart was already taken. It was one of the things that made her Balthazar’s favourite guest. Yes, favourite. To hell with lazy american spellings.

“Well, I’m afraid I bat for the other team, ma’am, but as long as your hands don’t wander, let’s give this a go,” the medic grinned, helping her to a sitting position. After giving her a minute to make sure she was good, no dizziness or lightheadedness, he helped her up, arms around her torso as her hands gripped his shoulders appreciatively without any of that talon-like quality many older womens’ fingers take on.

Shifting from foot to foot, Sam watched the procedure anxiously, mind obviously buzzing over what to do about Kate. Balthazar suspected Gabriel’s disappearance might be taking up a corner of Sam’s attention, but he didn’t have the time to address it right now. Fortunately, his earlier discussion with Mildred suggested the boy wanted whatever he thought had happened to be kept quiet, at least for now.

“Sam, you realize the paramedics are going to have to report this to the police?” the unfamiliar woman said, stepping up beside Jo.

“What?” Sam asked.

“She’s right,” the paramedic said, getting Mildred settled into her bed and adjusting it to a reclining position, feet raised. “We’re required by law to report any medical emergencies caused by abuse or neglect. I’m afraid your nurse may wind up charged with criminal negligence.”

“What would that mean for the nursing home, Jess?”

“I’m not sure. At the very least, you’d have to get a replacement nurse immediately. Beyond that, I wouldn’t know; I haven’t come across this kind of case yet. But Daddy would know. Let me call and ask him,” Jess replied, pulling out her mobile phone.

“He should also know, Kate’s technically the owner, though she makes us do most of the work and keeps the profit for herself,” Sam mentioned.

“Are you, Dean, or Adam listed at all?”

“Adam might be; I’ve never actually seen the documents. I don’t think she would’ve put Dean and I down though.”

Jo interjected before Jess could reply. “Sam, do you mind if I go give the cops a heads up? It’d probably look better if we call it in before the paramedics do.”

“Good idea. You should definitely do that,” Jessica replied, waiting until Jo was on the phone at the front desk before heading toward the side exit down the hall, phone to her ear.

“Well, Mildred, other than needing your medications, you’re all set,” the paramedic declared, giving her a pat on the knee.

The older woman took his hand and squeezed it lightly. “Thank you, young man. Knowing there are paramedics like you around almost makes me wish I had emergencies more often,” she teased.

“Hey, now, I don’t want to be seeing you again any time soon,” the guy admonished with an enchanting smile.

“That’s why I said ‘almost’,” Mildred laughed, releasing his hand.

“Do you mind if we hook you up to the monitor?” Sam asked, wheeling the machine over. The paramedic helped, showing Sam a better way of adjusting the BP cuff which would be more comfortable and give a more accurate reading. That done, Mildred shooed everyone out, hoping to catch the end of Doctor Sexy MD.

Balthazar excused himself as they all headed for Mr. Sinclair’s room, claiming the need for a bathroom. Of course he needed no such thing; that was just an excuse for the humans. Once in the guest bathroom he locked the door, shifted to his natural form, and shot upward with a flap of wings. Gabriel wasn’t in his office, so Baz started checking clouds and quickly found the archangel lying on his back, surrounded by white fluff, the arm lying across his eyes failing to hide his moist, blotchy red cheeks. Apparently angels could cry if they spent enough time in corporeal form. Or maybe just if they hurt too much.

“You know, he hasn’t told anyone,” Baz said gently to his friend and boss. “He even asked Mildred to keep quiet about the ‘ghost’ she saw.”

“Good for him,” Gabriel said, folding his wings over his face.

“Are you planning to hide here forever?” Balthazar asked.

“Yes.”

“You _do_ know you can’t do that, right? You’ve a job to do.”

Gabriel sighed. “You and Cassie take over; he’s always near Dean and Jo anyway.”

“Unfortunately, that isn’t your only job,” Baz pointed out.

“I’ll go back to my office once I’ve calmed down. And stay there.”

“Running away never solves anything.”

“Who’s running away? I’m just uncomplicating his life. I wasn’t supposed to be in it in the first place and never should have given in to the urge to- help him.”

“And then you fell in love.”

“What?” Gabe sputtered, sitting up abruptly, a few feathers shaking loose as his wings snapped open.

“Gabriel, you’re welcome to lie to me if that’s your wish, but please do not lie to yourself. Feelings aside, though, the police will be investigating the nursing home shortly, and you need to be there to answer questions; otherwise it will look suspicious. The authorities would waste time investigating you rather than focusing their resources on finding Kate.”

“Finding Kate? Why, what happened? Is Sam o-”

“Sam’s worried, but otherwise fine,” Baz assured, then proceeded to explain the events since Gabriel had left.

 

*****

 

A knock on the door followed by Sam’s voice asking if he could come in had Gabriel sitting bolt upright in bed. His first instinct was to disappear, but that would defeat the purpose of his having come back. “Come in,” he answered, forcing his voice loud enough to be heard. Laying back down, he turned toward the wall as the door opened, not wanting to see Sam. He’d rather not talk to Sam at all, but Balthazar had insisted he come back, at least until the cops had finished up their investigation. Unfortunately, that meant facing the aftermath of having been seen being obviously inhuman, and he didn’t want to hear the condemnation in Sam’s voice or see the fear in his eyes. Gabe wasn’t human; never had been. And now Sam knew it. Hearing footsteps nearing, he hunched in on himself a bit more, flinching as a weight settled on the mattress.

“Please, Gabe, look at me. Talk to me. Why did you disappear like that?” Sam asked gently, a large hand settling on the smaller man’s hip.

“You have to ask? How about ‘because I could’? You saw.”

“Saw what? You saving Mildred’s life? What’s wrong with that? Other than you disappearing for hours and letting me worry that you overexerted yourself or weren’t coming back?”

“Why would you want me to come back? Sam, I’m… I’m not human,” Gabe replied with a shuddering breath.

“And? I’m not … whatever you are, but you like me anyway, right? Why should it be any different the other way around?”

“Because, humans are-”

“Gabriel Engel, don’t you dare stereotype me,” Sam interrupted, then hitched a breath. “Engel… like, angel?”

“I’m not supposed to answer that,” Gabe mumbled.

“Why? Is being an angel bad? Because, I gotta say, ever since you showed up I’ve actually enjoyed getting up in the mornings. I’ve looked forward to days instead of dreading them. And I think I’ve laughed more than I ever have in my life. And saving Mildred’s life? How could any of that be wrong? Please tell me you’re not going to just run away again. I swear, I’m not going to tell anyone, not even Dean. And Mildred won’t either. She thinks you were a ghost. Oh, come to think of it, you should probably stop by and see her soon, just to reassure her you’re not dead. She thought you were a ghost that just looked like you, not that it was your ghost specifically, but she’ll probably worry a bit anyway.”

They were both silent for several long minutes before Gabriel finally replied. “I’ll stop in and see her once the cops are done with me, but Sam, I can’t stay here. I’m needed back in Hea… home.”

“You’ve been here for almost two months; what’s changed that they suddenly need you back? Other than you wanting to abandon me.”

“Never!” Gabe exclaimed, sitting up and turning to face the taller man. “Sam, I’m not abandoning you; you’ll still be watched over and protected, and you have Jess now, so-”

“Who has Jess?” Sam interrupted.

“You do?” 

“Why are you so quick to jump to assumptions?”

“What?” Gabe asked, brows wrinkled in an uncharacteristic Cassie impersonation.

“Gabriel, I’m not with Jess,” Sam replied with a roll of his eyes.

“You’re not? Have you two not had time to talk yet with everything that’s gone on?”

“No, we talked. We’re going to stay friends, maybe email now and then while she’s at Stanford, but that’s it.”

“That’s it? But, this morning, she was thinking about proposing to you,” Gabriel frowned.

Sam shook his head. “Yeah, she did, once things had gotten less crazy around here. I turned her down. She may have been my ideal once, but not now.”

“What? Why?”

Sighing, Sam leaned over, grabbed Gabe’s vest, and pulled him for a thorough kissing. When they parted, he cupped Gabriel’s cheeks, capturing and holding his gaze. “Gabriel, ever since you blew into my life like a storm, I haven’t been able to imagine a future that didn’t include you. Whether as friend or lover, that’s up to you, though my preference is the latter. But please don’t tell me I have to learn to live without your light in my life, because I don’t think I can survive going back to that darkness.”

“Wow, Sam, tell us how you really feel,” Gabe mumbled, buying time to think with a joke. The truth was, that confession had his heart skipping a beat, the ever-growing love and devotion he’d been denying flooding his chest and filling it fit to burst. “You really want that? Me, I mean?” he asked, blinking moisture from his eyes and drawing in a shuddery breath.

“Yes,” Sam replied without hesitation.

“Even though I’m not human and what you see isn’t my real form? You’d still want me, even if I had tentacles or claws or wings or 7 heads or spiky purple skin or no hair or-”

“Woah, hey. If you can like me even though I’m soft and fleshy and ridiculously tall, I’m sure I can handle whatever you’ve got. Besides, some of those could be kinda interesting; wings, tentacles, extra heads? Kinky,” Sam grinned.

The hope building with every assurance propelled him forward and Gabe tackled Sam onto the bed, arms around his neck as he fitted himself against the taller man, trying to melt into him.

“Does this mean you’re going to stay? No more running away?” Sam asked, rubbing a hand lightly up and down Gabe’s back.

“As long as you live, if that’s what you want,” Gabe replied, nuzzling into Sam’s neck.

“Only that long, huh?” Sam chuckled.

“That’s how long _I’ll_ stay with _you_. After that, _you_ can stay with _me_.” Gabriel grinned.

 

*****


End file.
